Claimed by Rafa by Denna Holm

4 Stars

The writing and editing of this novel was clean, with few if any typos that I caught in the ARC version of the manuscript. The world building was excellent, with me the reader getting a vibrant look at this intergalactic society and many different alien species. The characterization was excellent, with both hero and heroine being vibrant, sympathetic individuals. The development of the romantic relationship was natural and organic, and sensitively done considering the trauma in the heroine's past. the plot and pacing was exciting, with me turning pages rapidly to find out what was going to happen next. This novel contains medium angst and high stakes, which is one of my preferred narrative structures for a romance novel. This novel used the Mars Needs Women trope, the Abused Heroine trope, and the Mating Bond trope. I really enjoyed the longer length of this sci-fi romance. Many are too short, in my opinion. The world building, plot, and pacing were four stars in this novel. The characterization and the development of the romantic relationship were also four stars. The combined score of this novel was therefore four stars. This novel ends on a Happy Ever After ending instead of a cliffhanger, so that is a big plus to this novel. I recommend this novel to fans of sci-fi romances that use the Mars Needs Women tope and read a bit like an adventure novel or travelogue. I plan to buy myself a keeper copy of this novel. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Book Link